Tyrod Taylor nearly flawless in Virginia Tech's final scrimmage

Quarterback Tyrod Taylor said Saturday he'd be ready to compete against No. 3 Boise State if the game was played today, and his performance in Virginia Tech's final scrimmage backed up his assertion.

Taylor, a Hampton High graduate, completed 16 of 17 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns Saturday in a closed scrimmage inside Lane Stadium. His only incompletion came on a throwaway when he was being pressured by No. 10 Tech's second-team defense.

If Tech coach Frank Beamer's reaction is any indication, there's no question Beamer is confident about Taylor's play heading into the Sept. 6 season-opener against Boise State at FedEx Field in Landover, Md.

"I feel the same with him out there that I did with Mike Vick," Beamer said.

Though all of Taylor's passing numbers came against Tech's second-team defense, he completed touchdown passes to running back Darren Evans, wide receiver Jarrett Boykin and a 95-yard scoring play to tight end Andre Smith. Boykin had seven catches for 134 yards and a touchdown.

"I think overall (Saturday) the offense, as a group, did a real good job of making plays and executing the big plays," said Taylor, who completed a combined 27 of 33 passes for 456 yards, four touchdowns and an interception in Tech's last three preseason scrimmages.

Becton returns to scrimmage

Left tackle Nick Becton still is dealing with the effects of a turf toe injury on his right foot, but he managed to get on the field in the scrimmage to work with the second-team offense.

Tech offensive line coach Curt Newsome said Becton played for about two or three series. Newsome said there's a good chance backup left tackle Andrew Lanier will start against Boise State. Newsome still expects Becton to possibly be available for the game.

"(Becton is) still favoring that foot some," said Newsome, who also referred to Lanier as Tech's most improved offensive lineman in preseason practices. "I want to get him all the way healthy. We just didn't want a major setback (Saturday). That was the biggest thing. I didn't want him to go out there and go back to square one, so we got him some reps."

Wilson does it again

As he has done for most of the preseason, running back David Wilson again looked like a guy that's ready for playing time this season as opposed to a redshirt.

Wilson, a sophomore, led all running backs in the scrimmages with 11 carries for 61 yards. He played with both the first and second-team offenses. Tech offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring said the coaching staff will discuss today their plans regarding Wilson for the season, but the staff may not be ready to make a decision. Stinespring said an unofficial cut-off for when the coaching staff would like to play Wilson or redshirt him would be sometime in the first four weeks of the season.

"Is he going to get the opportunities and the chance to showcase and help us win ballgames?" said Stinespring regarding what the coaching staff is trying to evaluate. "Last year, obviously, there were times when he was a valuable part of it. Then, there was that time that we were relying a lot on Ryan (Williams) and Tyrod and those guys, and (Wilson) kind of filtered out of the process a little bit — not on his own accord, but certainly just part of the way the game flowed."